Natural disasters and perceived returns to education

The study examined the impact of exposure to Cyclone Idai on parents’ perceptions of education in Mozambique. The authors adopt a difference-in-difference approach to compare households interviewed before and after the cyclone occurrence, as well as households who were directly affected by the cyclone, through destructions, injuries, and deaths, and others who were not. The specific research question is how the occurrence of a natural disaster, and more specifically a cyclone, might affect parents’ belief in education. 

The results show that exposure to the cyclone positively affects the additional monthly "perceived returns to completing primary school". These results suggest that the complete destruction of the house or the injury/death of a household member can affect the beliefs of the household about the returns to education. The knowledge and recent experience that it is possible to lose all physical capital in such a short time can lead to a shift in perceptions in favor of human capital, which is much more mobile than physical capital